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Tag(s): Congress; Democratic; Dollar; Equal; Fairness; Injustice; Legislation; Rights; Senate; Women; (more...) Work; Workplace (less...)
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February 22, 2008 at 20:30:30

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The Fair Pay Restoration Act Will Restore Workplace Dignity

by Chris Lugo Page 1 of 1 page(s)

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Working women deserve equal opportunity in the workplace. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court dealt a huge blow to the rights of working women and civil rights protection recently when they voted by a decision of 5-4 to overturn basic worker's protection. It has been nearly forty years since the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which was supposed to help level the playing field in the workplace, but the sobering reality is that women still only make 68 cents for every dollar that a man earns. One of the reasons that this gap continues to persist is because of discriminatory pay practices.

There is a remedy to this deep social inequity which the Congress is considering that would give working women a break. It is called the Fair Pay Restoration Act, Senate Bill 1843. This act would remedy the recent decision of a conservative Supreme Court by reinstating the long standing wage discrimination protections which have been fundamental to women's progress in the workplace. The bill was passed by the House along party lines but is still being stalled in the Senate. I find this situation unacceptable. It is time for the Senate to vote for the Fair Pay Restoration Act (S. 1843) so that women will be able to earn equal pay in the workplace.

The reality of the workplace is that it is difficult for employees to discover the salaries and raises of other employees. Unfortunately this means that it is also difficult for an employee to discover if they are being paid a comparable wage, or if they are being discriminated against in terms of their salary. The Supreme Court ruled that employees must discover pay discrimination within 180 days of when the pay discrepancy occurred. This is a bad decision for employees and especially for women and minorities. It means that if an employer can get away with hiding the fact of their discrimination for six months, then after that time there is nothing an employee can do to challenge this decision or demand equal pay.

The Fair Pay Restoration Act will remove these unreasonable time limits which will allow victims of discrimination to seek back pay and damages when they become aware of this injustice. Women deserve fair pay in the workplace and this bill is an important component of ensuring they get it.

I promise to take every step I can to reduce the pay gap and utilize the tools of federal law to insure that all Americans are paid fairly for their work.

My name is Chris Lugo and I am a candidate for the US Senate seat in Tennessee. I am running as a progressive because I believe that the time has come to end the war in Iraq, ensure that all Americans have access to affordable, quality health care and to restore common sense and decency to our national dialogue. For far too long we have neglected the needs of the poor in America, allowing hundreds of thousands in Tennessee to go without healthcare and millions nationally. For far too long we have let our education system be a secondary priority to the military industrial complex. As a result of these misguided funding priorities we have a graduation rate in Tennessee of only about 60% statewide for high school students and only about one quarter of all Tennesseans graduate from college. We must take solid steps to ensure that all Americans have safe and affordable housing, that we live in a clear and healthy environment, and that we take steps to address the deep divisions of inequity that still persist in our society. I believe in the American dream and I believe that all Americans deserve the opportunity to have a rich and meaningful life, but the only way to ensure that these priorities are addressed is to make certain that our government makes this a priority, that our elected representatives make peace and social justice a priority on a national scale. We are at a crossroads in history, and Tennessee faces a choice which we all face. Do we choose to continue down the path of abandonment, of hopelessness and fear or do we choose to embrace the compassionate, hopeful elements of our national identity? I for one, choose to hope. I believe that the government is here to serve the people and our elected leaders are here to serve you.